EACH Act Would Remove Bans on Abortion Coverage in Federal Health Programs

Members of the U.S. Senate introduced on March 29 the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act, a federal bill to ensure that people who receive health care or insurance through the federal government have coverage for abortion care. The bill was introduced by Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI).

The EACH Act aims to reduce economic barriers to abortion access by ending the Hyde Amendment and related bans on abortion coverage that push abortion care out of reach for many people enrolled in federal health insurance programs, such as Medicaid and TRICARE, or who receive health care through a government provider, such as the Indian Health Service.

Federal employees and their dependents, military service members, Native Americans and Indigenous people, Peace Corps volunteers, immigrants, people in federal prisons, and residents of Washington, D.C. are all denied insurance coverage for abortion due to these bans.

“The Hyde amendment targets people living on low incomes and intentionally makes abortion unaffordable and inaccessible. It’s unconscionable and must end,” said Freya Riedlin, Federal Policy Counsel for the Center for Reproductive Rights. “By dismantling economic barriers to accessing abortion care, passage of the EACH Act would be a critical step toward equity in health care access—and towards making sure every person can make the health care decisions about their pregnancy that are best for themselves and their families.”

The EACH Act would also prevent the federal government from prohibiting or restricting coverage of abortion care by private health insurance companies, including those participating in the insurance marketplaces under the Affordable Care Act.

The Center for Reproductive Rights is part of a broad coalition, led by All* Above All, of more than 100 state, national, and regional organizations supporting the EACH Act.  

Through its U.S. congressional advocacy work, the Center advocates for federal laws that advance reproductive health, rights, and access, including the EACH Act.

Hyde Amendment Has Made Abortion Care Inaccessible for People Working to Make Ends Meet

Congress first passed the Hyde Amendment in 1976 as a rider on the annual Department of Health and Human Services funding bill with the aim of prohibiting abortion coverage under Medicaid. Lawmakers have renewed it every year since and have expanded its reach to ban abortion coverage for nearly all people who receive health insurance through the federal government, making abortion care inaccessible for millions of people working to make ends meet.

Medicaid plays an essential role in providing health care coverage for people who experience elevated rates of poverty, under- and unemployment, and gaps in private insurance coverage. Bans on abortion coverage compound the barriers to care many people already face due to systemic discrimination and economic insecurity, disproportionately impacting Black, Indigenous and people of color, people working to make ends meet, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and young people.